AN argument has broken out about the status of more than 300 bicycles that the Global Environment Facility (GEF) donated to eThekwini Municipality during COP17 12 years ago, with ActionSA provincial leader Zwakele Mncwango claiming that some of them have been sitting idle for all those years while others have disappeared.
However, the city has rejected Mncwango’s claims, saying that the bicycles have been put to good use, while those that he discovered at the municipality building covered by dust and rust have become unroadworthy after having been used for years for the purpose they were donated for.
The generous donation was celebrated at the city hall with then-mayor James Nxumalo, then-deputy mayor Nomvozo Shabalala, then-speaker Logie Naidoo, and other officials taking pictures with the bicycles.
The bicycles formed part of the low-carbon public transport component of the government of South Africa and the GEF/UN Industrial Development Organisation’s project for the COP17 Greening Programme, and also marked the inauguration of the eThekwini Non-Motorised Transportation Plan.
Having disappeared from the public eye for years, DA councillor Andre Beetge told the Daily News in 2022 that there was a question of whether the bicycles should be distributed to councillors or municipal officials in the interest of a wellness programme.
Beetge said at the time that the bicycles “have since disappeared. About three years ago, we started with an investigation on those bicycles and suddenly they started turning up in second-hand dealers where they were on sale for between R200 and R300”.
eThekwini spokesperson Gugu Sisilana said the bicycles were distributed across three municipal units, including eThekwini Transport Authority, metro police, and city fleet, “for the implementation of the Non-Motorised Transport (NMT) Programme”.
“As part of the NMT programme, the bicycles have been used for their intended purpose.
“The 300 bicycles were donated over 14 years ago (and) factoring in that lifespan, the bicycles are now worn out. The bulk of the bicycles are not safe to use and are deemed unroadworthy.”
She said the city cannot condone the use of such bicycles that have reached their lifespan.
“The bicycles, including the old unroadworthy ones, are currently kept at city depots, offices, and cycle academy sites. We have no knowledge of bicycles that have disappeared.
“A process is currently in place to safely dispose of the unroadworthy bicycles and all those that have parts which can no longer be used; these include the bicycles you are enquiring about.”
She said 110 bicycles are still in usable condition with eThekwini Transport Authority for various Non-Motorised Transport programmes and police patrols.
However, Mncwango recently told this reporter that he discovered some of them stashed at the municipality’s transport unity facility at 30 Archie Gumede Street in the Durban CBD.
“Most of them disappeared as they were stolen,” said Mncwango, who was a member of the council’s executive committee under the DA when the bicycles arrived.
He said the bicycles had value, were beautiful and of good quality, and “they could have been utilised”.
“My issue is that if you don’t have a plan to use them, why can’t you donate them to children than keep them like that until they decay?
“You could have given them away to poor children,” he said.
The bicycles were meant to be used by council employees between central parking and their offices to reduce traffic in the CBD.
“A person would alight from the Go! Durban bus and take a bicycle, and you would alight from buses and proceed with it to the city centre.
“Others were going to be used by community members and were going to be equipped with trackers, which were going to track its whereabouts. It was a good idea,” he said.
The municipality had in June 2021, released a statement announcing the success of a 2016 GO! Durban Cycle Academy Programme that involved young people from eNanda, KwaDabeka, Chesterville, and KwaMashu to “promote active mobility in the city”.
“Fifty community members have been identified following a rigorous selection process and will each receive a bicycle, helmet, and reflective safety vest. The bicycles are all fitted with tracking units that will enable GO! Durban to collect data that will allow the city to plan for better active mobility in the future,” read the statement.
However, it remained unclear whether the bicycles from the GEF were used for the GO! Durban Cycle.
On his Facebook page, Mncwango asked: “Why didn’t the city consider donating these bicycles to underprivileged children in townships, who often face daunting commutes to school?
“This would have not only provided a practical solution for these students but also promoted a noble cause.”
